Donald Trump has made history with his "State of the Union" speech - at least in terms of duration. The US President spoke to Congress for almost 1 hour and 48 minutes, longer than anyone before him since 1964.
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- US President Donald Trump has set a length record with his State of the Union address.
- His address to Congress lasted around 1 hour and 48 minutes, making it the longest since records began in 1964.
- The previous record was set by Bill Clinton in 2000.
US President Donald Trump has set a new record with his State of the Union address. His address to the US Congress on Tuesday evening (local time) lasted around 1 hour and 48 minutes. This was reported by several US media outlets, citing the American Presidency Project.
This made Trump the longest "State of the Union" speech since records began in 1964. The American Presidency Project has since recorded the duration of all speeches to a joint session of Congress. The previous record was just under 1 hour and 29 minutes. It was set by Democrat Bill Clinton in 2000.
Trump also beat his own record from the previous year. Back then, he spoke for 1 hour and 39 minutes. This speech was not formally considered a "State of the Union" because it was the first year of his second, non-consecutive term in office.
Politically, the record has little significance. In addition, the length was not solely due to Trump's speech: the "State of the Union" is traditionally interrupted several times, for example by applause, heckling and tributes from guests in the hall. For example, the national men's ice hockey team, which won Olympic gold, received special applause. These interruptions were included in the total duration.
For comparison: Richard Nixon gave the shortest speech of the past 60 years in 1972, lasting just 28 minutes.
The State of the Union address gives the President the opportunity to set political priorities. Trump's appearance came at a time when many Americans are critical of the state of the country.